The mind is a mysterious thing, indeed. Tonight, meandering through non-essential stories on the web something I ran across sparked Tracy Chapman's "Mountain o' Things" and it has been playing on a loop since. Like so many of Tracy Chapman's songs, the rhythm, the intensity of her presentation and the rawness of her voice can grip you and hold on, and if so it may take a while for the lyrics to really sink in. Due to the trigger story some lines particularly resonate tonight:
Good people are only
My stepping stones
It's gonna take all my mountains o' things
To surround me
Keep all my enemies away
Keep my sadness and loneliness at bay ...
And then, there's of course the last lines:
I'll be dreaming, dreaming... dreaming...
"Mountains o' Things" was included in her debut album which was released more than 25 years ago ... and even after all that time the song still speaks volumes and doesn't appear to have lost any of its pertinence ~
The song 'Kristallnaach' (Kristallnacht) by BAP was released in 1982 and the title refers to the events that took place in the night of 9./10. September 1938. The song is written in the dialect of Cologne and the band's official website graciously offers not only the lyrics but also a 'High German' translation both of which are reproduced below. Additionally, I tried my hand (and mind) at cobbling together an English translation - it's not necessarily literal but to the best of my understanding should bring the point across. Of course, any corrections, comments and revisions are very welcome and greatly appreciated ~
... no Cavalry to save the day,
No Zorro is there to take care
That one just pees a "Z" in the snow
And -babbling nonchalantly- topples over
"So what?"- Kristallnacht!
Hope you opt to listen and to have a look at the lyrics -
1)
Et kütt vüür, dat ich mein, dat jet klirrt,
dat sich irjendjet en mich verirrt,
e Jeräusch, nit ens laut,
manchmol klirrt et vertraut,
selden su, dat mer et direk durchschaut.
Surfing around the web something about a poll on religious freedom caught my eye. What's there to poll you may ask, as I was wondering, shouldn't everybody just be pro? I continued scanning and found out that apparently the majority was for more religious freedom ... for Christians not so much for other religions. Of course, the outcome of any poll depends of a variety of factors including, but certainly not limited to, the demographics and the manner in which questions are phrased. Nonetheless, things like that poll are scary, I think. Doesn't it makes a wasted effort out of the struggles of those who have fought hard -and even given their lives- to ensure liberties such as freedom of religion ... Of course, I'm well aware that such issues are rarely if ever painted in black and white and there are infinite nuances and facets adding to the total picture. Alas, the weeks past have been rather trying and I'm feeling utterly wretched tonight ...
"May the living let us live before the dead tear us apart" ~ "Let's let love give what it gives"
Worlds Apart (The Rising)
Bruce Springsteen
I hold you in my arms, yeah that's when it starts
I seek faith in your kiss and comfort in your heart
I taste the seed upon your lips, lay my tongue upon your scars
But when I look into your eyes we stand worlds apart
Where the distant oceans sing and rise to the plain
In this dry and troubled country your beauty remains
Down from the mountain road where the highway rolls to dark
'Neath Allah's blessed rain we remain worlds apart
Sometimes the truth just ain't enough
Or is it too much in times like this
Let's throw the truth away we'll find it in this kiss
In your skin upon my skin in the beating of our hearts
May the living let us live before the dead tear us apart
We'll let blood build a bridge over mountains draped in stars
I'll meet you on the ridge between these worlds apart
We've got this moment now to live then it's all just dust and dark
Let's let love give what it gives
Let's let love give what it gives
There are days when the music stage in my mind wants to play nothing but angry or sad songs. Sometimes that's just fine with me. Right now, however, considering the root of my anger and sadness, I seek a calming balm to ground myself again.
One song that has long had the ability to ease my mind is "Hymn", for tonight performed by Gregorian. The song was originally performed by Barclay James Harvest and released in 1977 in the album "Gone to Earth". Reading about it I was astonished to learn that "the song is primarily about the dangers of drug abuse, contrasting their illicit thrill with the spiritual 'high' of Christianity."
Hymn
Valley's deep and the mountain's so high
If you want to see God you've got to move on the other side
You stand up there with your head in the clouds
Don't try to fly you know you might not come down
Don't try to fly, dear God, you might not come down
A voice, a guitar, and a harmonica - sometimes that's all it takes. It certainly is when it comes to 'Fault Line' by 'Black Rebel Motorcycle Club' or 'BRMC'...
Fault Line
I've been waiting on the fault line
Living evil take me on
I'll be standing with my dying bed
If you care to come along
My mind keeps going back in time only to find songs that feel as if written for today ~ the message still resonating - at least with me. Nothing much seems to have changed since my mother translated the Latin portion of Cat Stevens' O Caritas for me. The cover of the album Catch Bull At Four provides an English translation which - while not literal - still very much brings the message home:
I don't want to lose the harmony of the universe
I see all things... burning, I hear men... shouting.
Now is the light of the world and the stars going out
YAY \ö/ ~ the weekend's here. And it's brought snowflakes along 😊 It just feels right to go 'Skating Away' with Jethro Tull. Admittedly, the song is not quite that exuberant when you look at the lyrics.
And as you cross the circle line, the ice-wall creaks behind
You're a rabbit on the run. ...
Perhaps it's because of the deeper contemplation that I keep playing it in my mind ~
Skating Away (On The Thin Ice Of The New Day) Jethro Tull
Meanwhile back in the year One, when you belonged to no-one
You didn't stand a chance son, if your pants were undone.
It's quite amazing -and saddening- how quickly the warm, golden glow of Christmas fades into memoryland while the rush and hustle accompanying the preparation for the looming year's end takes over ... It's grey outside and the cold drizzle seems to seep into the bones and my mind keeps playing 'Streets of Philadelphia' by Bruce Springsteen ~ oh, well, just one of those days ...
Back in the ~ few but -oh- so memorable ~ days playing with a group, 'Dust in the Wind' by Kansas was among the songs I loved best. It's hard to pin down why, perhaps it's because there is a certain fragility transcending the lyrics, the guitar line, the violin's melody, the vocals ... and -to me- everything combines to a perfect whole. And it's a song befitting the peace and quiet tonight ...
Don't hang on
Nothing lasts forever, but the earth and sky
It's there always
And all your money won't another minute buy ...
Sometimes I run into a song and it strikes me: The song dates back to the 60ies ~ alas, it could have been written yesterday ... Farewell, Angelina written by Bod Dylan is one of those songs ~ I'm using the version by John Mellencamp here because that's the version I heard first ...
The machine guns are roaring
The puppets heave rocks
The fiends nail time bombs
To the hands of the clocks ...
I love listening to Tracy Chapman's songs, the intensity of her presentation and the rawness of her voice. And not to forget the lyrics which are worth to listen to carefully. Mountains o' Things was included in her debut album which was released more than 25 years ago ... and in all that time I've not grown tired of listening to it ~
The life I've always wanted
I guess I'll never have
I'll be working for somebody else
Until I'm in my grave
I'll be dreaming of a live of ease
And mountains Oh mountains o' things
When I grew up I could just make out the train tracks beyond the fields and the creek lined by brush and small trees. At night, after the 'lights out' had been called by my parents, I would kneel on my bed, arms rested on the window sill, nose pressed to the glass, waiting for the trains to pass by - no more than a line of lights on the horizon, like a string of golden pearls rolling across the black velvet of the darkness. Hearing the whistle call out through the night across the expanse signaled all is well and lulled me to sleep filled with dreams of boarding a train and seeing the world beyond.
I guess that's at the root of my fascination with trains and my loving songs which resonate with that fascination. One of those songs is '500 Miles' - performed by 'The Hooters' (also here) and so many others ... Perhaps Paul Simon has it right when singing:
If you miss the train I'm on
You will know that I am gone
You can hear the whistle blow
A hundred miles
A hundred miles, a hundred miles
A hundred miles, a hundred miles
You can hear the whistle blow
A hundred miles
Paul Simon's album "The Rhythm of the Saints" accompanied me on one of my first road trips in the U.S. By the end of the trip I knew all of the songs by heart. Of course, by the end of the trip sadness began casting a shadow over the sunny days - the care free time was running short, the 'normal life' and its hectic and constraints began looming ~ and the closer I go to the end of the road, the more I turned to "The Cool, Cool River" ...
[Ed. 24.07.16] Another city, another coward spilling blood ... "sometimes even music cannot substitute for tears" ...
The Cool, Cool River
Moves like a fist through traffic
Anger and no one can heal it
Shoves a little bump into the momentum
It's just a little lump but you feel it
In the creases and the shadows
With a rattling deep emotion
The cool, cool river
Sweeps the wild, white ocean
Imagine: Sailing through the night, out in the bay. The sky is clear, sprinkled with stars, the moon is almost full and reflects in the choppy water. The breeze is just enough to keep our sails filled and propel us southward. In the distance the big container ships cling to the shipping channel - lit up like Christmas trees. They are far enough away so the rumble of their enormous engines does not reach us. Only the boat's radio, tuned in to their communication frequency, lets us hear their voices from time to time. It's the wind murmuring in the sails, the creaking of the boat, the water splashing against the hull ~ nothing matters but staying the course and watching the water to avoid any objects floating along with us which could damage the hull ... and, of course, enjoying the moment!
When I first heard "Into the Mystic" by Sir Van Morrison it brought back the memory of that sailing trip and in particular that night out on the bay. Such a soothing, peaceful night - such a soothing, peaceful song ~
This page is about music, certainly not politics. But then, sometimes, music touches on politics and there’s no getting around scraping the issue.
Not that I believe all I hear on the news, but this sounds just wrong enough to be true: Donald Trump is playing Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the U.S.A.” at his rallies as a swipe at his co-contender Ted Cruz. … What’s wrong with this picture? Anybody? Anything?
To me, the song is anything but glorious or patriotic.
... "these are the roots of rhythm and the roots of rhythm remain" ...
Paul Simon is a wonderful storyteller, and I've been following his music for quite a while. To get to know one of his songs has become a three stage process for me. Firstly, focusing on the lyrics until I feel well acquainted with the story; secondly, letting myself get caught in the melody and rhythm of the song; and lastly, bringing it all together: the words, the melody, and the rhythm, painting beautiful pictures for my mind's eye to enjoy.
